Chapter 1874 – Return of The Mount Hua Sect

Chapter 1874. Simple, isn’t it? (4) ❀ ❀ ❀

Swish! Swish! Swish! Swish!

“Urgh… uuugh…”

The last remaining of the Evil Tyrant Alliance warrior, riddled with holes all over his body like the wind had pierced through him, collapsed with a groan of agony.

‘Wow……………’

Baek Sang’s eyes shook. The scene before him was shocking, these enemies they had struggled so hard against were crushed in an instant, making all their earlier efforts seem meaningless.

‘As expected... Jin Geumryong is still Jin Geumryong.’

Though his fame had faded after losing to both Cheong Myeong and Baek Cheon, Jin Geumryong had once been a contender for the title of the strongest among the foremost disciples of his generation alongside Namgung Dowi and Mujin. Simply put, Baek Sang never even dreamed of comparing himself to someone like him.

Feeling that overwhelming gap all over again, Baek Sang could only nod.

‘Anyway, he’s on our side for now.’

Baek Sang was well aware of the bad blood between Jin Geumryong and Baek Cheon. But right now, Jin Geumryong’s actions didn’t reflect that hostility. If anything, at least in Baek Sang’s eyes, Jin Geumryong looked furious over the fact that Baek Cheon’s life had been endangered.

Even if Jin Geumryong had maintained a cold demeanor, Baek Sang’s opinion wouldn’t have changed much.

After all, Jin Geumryong’s entire body was drenched in blood and sweat. That alone was enough to guess how desperately he had been searching for Baek Cheon.

‘So, blood really is thicker than water?’

At that moment, Jin Geumryong turned his body and walked toward Baek Sang.

“What’s this?”

“...Huh?”

The chilly voice made Baek Sang instinctively shrink back in tension.

‘N-no, I’m not scared just because he’s from Zhongnan.’

He didn’t want to admit it, but there was nothing he could do about it.

If it were Jongli Gok standing there, Baek Sang might’ve tried to act crazy or put up a front. But with Jin Geumryong? No chance. He looked exactly like Baek Cheon, but with a glacial, razor-sharp expression—it was like facing Baek Cheon when he was truly enraged. How could anyone stand tall in front of that?

“Who are those kids? What the hell were they doing here?”

Jin Geumryong pointed his chin toward the children, his brow furrowing. Baek Sang stammered to respond.

“T-that is…”

Eventually, he finished explaining as briefly and clearly as possible. Jin Geumryong’s expression twisted.

“He risked his life for something like that? Without considering his own condition?”

To be honest, Baek Sang had never liked Jin Geumryong. But this time, he completely agreed with him.

It wasn’t that the kids of Diancang weren’t precious. But shouldn’t a person take care of his own life as well?

‘Just as others are precious, he must understand that he is precious too.’

But it seemed that damned sahyung of his didn’t even understand such an obvious truth.

“Um, by the way…”

“Hmm?”

“Do you… have any idea what’s going on over there?”

Baek Sang hesitantly asked, and Jin Geumryong furrowed his brows. He wasn’t entirely sure how to respond either.

A massive surge of energy was swirling. No, calling it internal energy wasn’t quite right. Rather than internal energy, it felt more like…

“Should I call it life force? No, that’s not it…” [saeng gi, 생기(生氣): life/vital energy/qi]

“Huh?”

Baek Sang asked again, but Jin Geumryong remained silent, his brows deeply furrowed. He was lost in thought.

This was a phenomenon Jin Geumryong had never witnessed before. No matter how he tried to analyze it, all he could feel was an overwhelming sense of dissonance.

‘Yeah. Rather than life force, the term external energy fits better.’ [oe gi, 외기(外氣): outer/ external qi]

It was the raw energy spread throughout the world, the source of internal energy that martial artists refine and draw into their bodies through circulation.

‘But external energy doesn’t gather in one place like this.’

If that were possible, why would martial artists spend their lives struggling to build their internal energy?

Yet, right before the eyes of Jin Geumryong and Baek Sang, that very impossibility was unfolding. Yes, something that shouldn’t be able to gather was gathering, which naturally created an intense feeling of wrongness.

Jin Geumryong spoke softly.

“I’m not sure what exactly it is yet, but at the very least, it’s not something bad for him.”

“No, who doesn't know that—!”

“What?”

Baek Sang immediately shrank his neck.

He looked just like Baek Cheon, but this man was far colder. Jokes didn’t work on him at all.

Just as Baek Sang was awkwardly about to explain himself, a sudden change occurred.

“Huh?”

“What is…?”

Both of their gazes snapped to Baek Cheon.

They felt it at the same time. The energy was fading. No, even that wasn’t accurate. It was collapsing rapidly, as though it were about to be extinguished at any moment.

The light surrounding Baek Cheon had clearly dimmed and weakened.

They didn’t understand the mechanics, but one thing was certain. This wasn’t the result of a completed process. It had collapsed halfway through, unable to reach the end.

Like a candle burning brightly but sputtering out halfway when the wick snaps, the energy enveloping Baek Cheon was scattering quickly.

Baek Sang, his face pale, shouted.

“Wh-what is happening?!”

“…Damn it.”

Jin Geumryong bit his lip hard.

“It’s not enough. He doesn’t have the strength to continue.”

“Huh? T-then what happens now?”

Baek Sang’s eyes widened.

“Still… even if it stops like this, he’ll be better off than before, right?”

“......”

“Why aren’t you answering?! Right? That’s right, isn’t it?”

Jin Geumryong couldn’t answer. He didn’t even have the mental space to form one.

If a caterpillar trying to metamorphose into a butterfly suddenly halts halfway, could you really say it’s better than before? Wouldn’t that just be a more thorough and brutal kind of death?

At this rate, Baek Cheon would die—without a doubt.

Reading that answer in Jin Geumryong’s silence, Baek Sang hurriedly shouted in a panic.

“W-we have to do something! That’s right. Strength! If he doesn’t have enough strength, we just need to give him more! We can help, right? If we inject him with energy—!”

“It’s not enough. Just us...”

Jin Geumryong bit his lip again. Baek Sang, growing desperate, raised his voice.

“No! We should at least try! Isn’t it better than doing nothing?!”

It wasn’t like Jin Geumryong wasn’t desperate too. But they couldn’t afford to act recklessly either. If he could guarantee that giving all of his internal energy would save Baek Cheon, he wouldn’t hesitate for a second.

But this wasn’t something that could be solved by desperate hope alone.

‘Most crucially…’

The people here simply didn’t have enough strength to fill the void Baek Cheon now faced. What Baekcheon needed now, having exhausted all his strength, was the very essence of the primordial source itself. [근원 자체의 힘: the source power itself]

In other words, he needed the very power of nature that Taoists pursue.

Of course, it’s impossible for humans to wield the power of nature in its pure form. However, Taoist’s [seon gi, 선기(仙氣)]—the “immortal energy”—was the closest human-made approximation to that force. And right now, they desperately needed it.

If someone here could even slightly wield Taoist’s Immortal Qi, there might be a sliver of hope. Even better if it was a master from Mount Hua, whose energy most closely resembled Baek Cheon’s own.

But there were no Mount Hua masters nearby. Baek Sang was here, yes, but his power alone was far from enough. At the very least, someone close to Mount Hua’s top internal power was required to even attempt it.

But if they spent time searching for such a person now, Baek Cheon would be dead by then.

“This is insane! Are we really just supposed to stand here and watch him die? After coming all this way?!”

“......”

“Just move. If no one else will, I’ll try.”

“Stop it. You’ll die too if you try.”

“I know, I said get out of the damn way! If anyone’s going to die, let it be me!”

“Damn it! That’s not going to save him!”

Jin Geumryong’s shout struck Baek Sang’s ears like a whip. His eyes burned as he glared at Baek Sang.

“If it were possible, I would’ve done it myself long ago! No matter what price I had to pay!”

Crack.

Jin Geumryong’s teeth dug into his lip.

If they weren’t careful, those trying to save Baek Cheon would die too. And that, more than anything, was the ending Baek Cheon himself would hate most. Jin Geumryong didn’t care if he died, but if the damned people from Mount Hua, whom his foolish little brother cherished so deeply, were to get caught up and die? That he had to prevent.

“Then… then what do we do…?”

Jin Geumryong clenched his fists tightly.

“That damned idiot. In the end, it comes to this…”

If the experienced members of Heavenly Comrade Alliance were here, perhaps they could’ve found another solution. The wise elders would surely have figured out a way. Not only Taoist Wudang, at least if elders of Zhongnan were present, there might’ve been another path.

But now, there were only them here. In the end, Baek Cheon’s refusal to care for himself had pushed him to death.

Crack.

Jin Geumryong clenched his fists so tightly his knuckles turned white.

‘This is why righteousness and ideals are…’

He never expected repayment. But at the very least, there shouldn’t be a price for simply acting out of goodwill.

Unconsciously, his lower lip bled from how hard he bit down. Then suddenly, in a voice filled with anguish, he spoke with empty despair.

“You foolish little brother. Just what were you… trying to protect…”

Just as Jin Geumryong was about to be completely consumed by despair—

“Yeah. Truly foolish indeed.”

A voice came from behind, and Jin Geumryong turned sharply.

It wasn’t a familiar voice, but one he knew. And yet, the owner of this voice shouldn’t be here.

Turning in disbelief, Jin Geumryong could only gape. It wasn’t an illusion. He was really standing there. Though his appearance was haggard, his expression was firm and unwavering.

“But that’s exactly why that child is Baek Cheon.”

“S-sect Leader?”

Baek Sang muttered in disbelief.

The former Sect Leader of Mount Hua, Hyeon Jong, was standing there.

“N-no, Sect Leader… how are you… here…?”

Baek Sang blinked in shock, completely stunned. Even though Baek Cheon’s life hung by a thread, he couldn’t tear his eyes away from Hyeon Jong. That’s how unbelievable his appearance was.

Hyeon Jong didn’t answer. He simply gazed at Baek Cheon.

At the moment he thought everything had fallen apart, only one person came to his mind. The one he had cast out—wishing at least that he could live, even if far away.

But the one who would never follow Hyeon Jong’s intentions.

Hyeon Jong knew full well that his being here now was irresponsible. That he should never place a single disciple above the whole of Mount Hua.

Yet, even so, Hyeon Jong had come. The moment he let go of all the things that had supported—or perhaps bound—him, his heart had naturally guided him here.

He moved not from duty, but from desire. For the first time in his life, he wasn’t doing what he must, but what he wanted to do. And so, he had arrived here.

Hyeon Jong gently closed his eyes.

‘Perhaps… this was Heaven’s will.’

But he quickly shook his head, rejecting the thought.

There is no such thing as Heaven’s will. Even if there was a lofty will, people don’t move only according to it. The reason he was here now was simply because his Tao had led him here.

“Baek Cheon-ah.”

Hyeon Jong looked at him with pity in his eyes.

The disciple he had exiled still upheld the path of Mount Hua, even after shedding the shell of Mount Hua itself. No—perhaps, now, his will had become Mount Hua’s true path.

And if so, then Hyeon Jong’s role was clear. Without hesitation, Hyeon Jong stepped toward Baek Cheon.

“Help him.”

“…Is it possible?”

A blunt question cut in. Though it could have seemed rude, the desperation in Jin Geumryong’s eyes made it impossible for anyone to blame him.

“Alone, it would be difficult. But…”

Hyeon Jong’s gaze turned to Jin Geumryong.

“You are here, are you not?”

“But I’ve never trained in Taoist internal energy.”

“Which is exactly why you can help. The world exists in harmony between the Tao and the mundane.”

“....”

“Let’s try.”

Jin Geumryong gave a deep, firm nod.

“M-me too!”

“Of course you are.”

Hyeon Jong, Jin Geumryong, and Baek Sang moved toward Baek Cheon’s body. As they approached, the light still emanating from him stung their eyes a little more strongly.

Finally, the three reached out their hands to Baek Cheon’s back. Baek Sang was first. Jin Geumryong followed.

Hyeon Jong paused as he looked at Baek Cheon’s back, now under their hands. It was just as precarious as when they had first met, but his shoulders had grown broader since then. A pang struck somewhere in Hyeon Jong’s chest.

Then, Hyeon Jong placed his hand on Baek Cheon’s back as well.

And in that instant, a far brighter light than before erupted from Baek Cheon’s body.

Next Chapter

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